And La Belle Dame Approacheth
by Yandoryn
Summary: When we worry about how much a loved one has changed, sometimes we forget about the love. RizaMartel, yuri
1. When We Were Kids

Martel yawned, stretching lightly. "That's sad," Riza said, walking over to her, tracing the marks over her skin. "What is?" Martel asked, licking her lips.

"What they did to you."

"Do we have to go over this again?" Martel asked, reaching up to pull Riza's hair down, letting the blonde locks fall over the lieutenant's shoulders.

"They had to cuff you down," Riza said, sighing.

Martel shrugged. "They strap you down for automail surgery. They were really worried I'd hurt myself. I was close to dying. I'm actually grateful I'm like this."

"How could you be grateful?" Riza asked, her eyes soft and sad, looking over Martel's body, trying to compare it to the automail on Ed's body, but not able to shift her mind's repulsion at what _they _ had done to Martel.

Martel shrugged and started undoing her clothing. "Let me show you," she said quietly.

Riza watched her undo her clothes, swallowing hard, looking at the lean body before her, covered with tattoos, but no scars.

Martel dropped her black tank top and knife on the floor. She looked at Riza, smiling wryly, stepping forward. She took the belt of her pant and let the loose fabric fall to the floor. She stood in front of Riza in her underwear.

"I don't have any scars," she said quietly, stretching further than any human should, popping her back. "And I'm alive."

"You're nothing like what you used to be," Riza mumbled, not sure if her stare was in awe or disgust. "When we were kids…"

"Young sweethearts," Martel said quietly, reminiscing. She took Riza's hands in her own, tracing the calluses on the officer's fingers. She pressed the fingers up against her stomach. "I'm sure I still feel a bit the same," Martel whispered, kissing Riza gently.

Riza closed her eyes, tears forming at the corners, sweeping her hands up the toned body, toying with the lace of Martel's bra. She kissed back desperately, almost afraid, wishing that Martel felt different.

But in so many ways, she was the same.


	2. Excuses

_It was so easy for me to fall back into old patterns, looking at Martel's lithe body, so similar to _her _, my first lover. Martel clearly explained to me that she had lost some of her humanity in the "operation," as she called it, and some of her memories were unclear. Here I am, kissing a chimera desperately, as if she could bring it back, those comfortable days sitting with Martel, but even while I'm kissing her, I'm wishing the skin, the body, the person would feel different. So I'd have an excuse.  
_

"I don't know how long I can keep you here," Riza said, pouring some dog food in a bowl for Black Hayate. The dog waited patiently, waiting for both a verbal and physical signal before setting to his dinner, eating happily, wagging his entire rear.

Martel smiled at the animal, leaning over to scratch him behind the ears. "I remember you really well," she said, the dog abandoning his food to paw at Martel's legs. Riza stared at the dog, wondering what could cause him to abandon his rigorous training. Martel, however, didn't seem to care, massaging the dog's paws as he licked her face.

"What do you remember?" Riza managed to ask after a while, watching the dog love all over the chimera.

_ It was like one of those days. I'm sitting in a slip on the bed, yawning, trying to figure out what the hell I want to do with my life. Martel's got her arms around my neck, her soft lips brushing against the skin in a half-kiss. Let's join the military, she said, purring up against me, her gentle breath flowing over the fine hairs on my neck. Now that I think about it, Martel was always animalistic, always flexible, always purring, rubbing up against me. The military? I asked her._

_Yeah. The military.  
_

"You're lucky I have my own flat," Riza said, pulling sheets tight on a pristine sofa. "I think the military would ask questions if I brought a human chimera into my dorm."

"I remember our first dorm," Martel said quietly.

Riza looked at her, wondering for a moment. "What do you remember?"

_ I know what I remember. Martel, pinning me down on the bed, kissing me hard, making me whine and beg. Turning me into the animal she always was, growling as she hissed in my ear._

_Maybe we both have changed…_

_Or maybe were weren't sure back then._**_  
_**

"Are you in love with anyone?" Martel asked, Black Hayate asleep in her lap.

Riza looked down, suddenly uncomfortable by the situation. As a woman in the military, she never had anyone ask her questions like that. Even Roy and Jean, her friends, couldn't risk it. "Some might call it love," she said quietly. "But that's not the question you are asking."

"What do you mean?" Martel asked, watching Riza evenly.

"There's some problems in the military," Riza said, swallowing, "I mean, you should know this. Not even vital parts of the military know projects like the one that…_saved _ you are around."

"They did save me," Martel said, holding her arms, her body stretching past human tolerance.

Riza looked sadly at Martel. "But what did you lose?" she asked, stepping towards the other blonde, tracing the tattoos on her face.

"What do you mean?" Martel asked, sucking on her lower lip.

"What do you remember?"

_ My marksmanship had always been good. I think I was in the gun range when I first met Martel, but that memory seems kind of hazy now._

_Martel picked up one of the pistols lackadaisically and I could tell from her grip she'd never handled one. "How does it work?" she asked abruptly._

_I think I found her rude at first. Her demanding presence and demeanor. Her ruthless, dominant grin. But when I looked into her eyes, I _remember _ something different._

_I stood behind her, showing her how to ready the gun for fire, the simple gist of the weapon. She had obviously never held a weapon like it before, but I didn't bother to show her how to hold the gun steady or how to deal with the kick._

_I turned back to my other target, taking a deep breath, regaining my composure, watching the target, gaining my ground._

_I knew she'd shoot the gun before I was ready, so I waited for it. I heard the gun go off and exactly three seconds later, I shot mine._

_I didn't know what to say. The girl had shot the target better than me and this was the first time she had held a gun. What made even more curious, however, was when the girl smiled and put the gun down._

_I think I like knives better, she said, pushing the weapon away._

_I'd been shooting for years and this girl shows up, shoots a target and moves on to new things._

_I had to know her.  
_

"It's getting cold outside," Martel mused. "Makes me lethargic."

"Black Hayate's not allowed on the sofa," Riza said uselessly, watching the chimera pet the dog on the sofa, Black Hayate sprawled upside down in her lap. "I wish I could make it a bit warmer."

"It's okay," Martel said with a smile, that smile, the one she always remembered in her dreams. "It just makes me a little sleepy."

Riza paused, looking at Martel for a while before saying, "I could warm you up."

"I'd like that," Martel said, stretching her arms out to Riza.

Even though she had been the one to offer, it took a few moments for Riza to get over to Martel, her eyes watching her face, taking in her body, her initial fear merging with her _want _ for Martel to be back, possible forming acceptance. Hopefully, at least.

She stepped to the woman, letting the chimera wrap her arms around her, moving into the partial-human's lap.

"You're warm," Martel said, sighing lightly. "Always were warmer than me, though. Like when I would put my cold feet on you at night…"

Riza smiled, leaning her head back on Martel's shoulder. "Yeah," she said. "You did like to do that and then I'd yell at you…"

"Mmmhm," Martel intoned, still sleepy, undoing Riza's hair. "You let your hair grow out."

"Yeah," Riza mumbled. "Like it?"

"It's different," Martel said. "But I like it."

"What else is different?" Riza asked. "What do you remember?"

_ Our first dorm, Martel said happily. Sorry about your parents, though._

_They always wanted me to join the military, I shrugged. Just not with my girlfriend._

_Now, what are we going to do with the extra bedroom? Martel pondered._

_I grinned, knowing where Martel was going with this. Martel, I said instead, distracting from the question._

_Riza?_

_We're really different people, you know, I stated, picking a bedroom and sitting down on the bed._

_Martel made her way into my lap, grinning happily. I know, she practically purred. I mean, we're in completely different parts of the army simply because our personalities lend different talents..._

_But in some ways, we're really similar, I continued, kissing at Martel's neck. Martel's purr turned to a slight gasp as my teeth scraped along the tender flesh._

_We are, Martel agreed._

_I paused, pulling back from Martel's neck, giving the pale flesh a quick kiss. I whispered quietly in her ear, Martel, that's why I'd like to be with you forever._

_Martel turned to look at her, slight tears in her eyes. I'd love that, she said quietly, burying her face into my shoulder._

_That was the only time I saw her weepy. Every other time it was indignant angry or a cocky smile. But I had reduced her to tears of bliss. So I just held her, not wanting to break up the moment.  
_

"If you're so keen on memories," Martel said eventually, "why don't you tell me what _you _ remember."

Riza stared off for a moment. "I remember a lot of things, Martel. I remember a girl who I only saw cry once."

"I remember a girl who was the only one who could make me cry," Martel responded.

Riza closed her eyes, silent tears creeping up in her eyes, though she wasn't sure if they were from bliss or misery. "I remember," she continued, her voice cracking, "A girl who shot better than me the first time she picked up her gun."

"I remember a girl who I didn't know how to flirt with," Martel told her quietly.

The tears were flowing freely now, and Riza caught her sobs with a cough. "I remember," she managed, "a girl who could command me, make me beg."

"I remember a girl who allowed me to lead her," Martel assured.

"I remember," Riza said again, Martel's soft fingers wiping away tears, " a girl with soft lips and a purring voice during the summer, giving us just a few more moments together."

"I remember a girl I never wanted to let go of," Martel whispered.

"I remember," Riza choked, Martel's arms securely around her, "a girl who loved me."

"That's not a memory," Martel told her.

"No," Riza said. "It's still continuing."

Martel didn't say anything, her fingers combing through Riza's hair answer enough.

"I remember," Riza tried for the last time. "I remember you, the girl I want to spend my entire life with."

"That's who I remember," Martel assured her.

_ I can't remember how many days or nights we had together, because it seems like the ran, watercolor inundated with tears. She had to leave eventually, telling me she just had a few more pieces of work to do. I made her promise she'd keep safe. She told me, for my sake, she'd do her best.  
_


	3. Warming Up

"Warming Up" "You've gotten domestic," Martel yawned, laying upside down on the couch, her back bent over the arm so she could look at Riza working in the kitchen. 

"I have_ not_!" Riza retaliated, sending a glaring look at the chimera. "And don't lay like that. It looks like it hurts."

Martel sat up and laughed, tucking her feet under her. "Doesn't hurt," she said, popping her back loudly. She laughed again as Riza winced, but the laugh was cut off by a gaping yawn. "Ah, so hard to get up in the winter..."

"Which is why I'm warming up the kitchen by using the stove oven," Riza said, making a small exasperated noise. "And if you'd put a coat on over your tank top..."

"You have gotten domestic," Martel assured her, moving into the kitchen. "In fact, you sound like my mother."

"Oh," Riza said shaking her head at that. "I do not sound_ anything _ like her. I'm very much my own woman, whether or not I ask if you want a sweater or if I cook in the kitchen!"

"It's just different," Martel assured her, helping herself to a warm cup of coffee, reveling in the heat before actually taking a sip.

"Sure," Riza said. "I know. I couldn't even cook hot cereal when we lived together."

Martel nodded, tipping the chair back onto two legs, ignoring the glare from Riza. "No, you couldn't," she agreed. "I had to keep you away from the stove!"

"Amazing," Riza said with a grin.

Martel looked at her in confusion, emptying her cup of coffee into her mouth.

"It's amazing that once no one was keeping me away from the stove, I learned to cook very easily," Riza told her, feigning confusion.

"How many fires did you have?" Martel asked, not falling for the bait.

"Only one!" Riza snapped back, bending over to open the oven.

"Well, that's pretty good," Martel said, watching her bed over. "You still work out a lot."

"And go to the shooting range," Riza said. "Why?"

"Because your ass is still as tight as ever," Martel said easily, smiling.

Riza rolled her eyes, getting the cookies out of the oven. "I made your favorite kind," she told the chimera, changing the subject entirely.

"Oatmeal with caramel chips?" Martel asked hopefully and was rewarded with a nod.

"They'll need to cool off," Riza told her with a look.

Martel grinned. "Are you sure you only made these to warm up the kitchen?" she teased. "They can cool in my mouth." She stepped behind Riza, slipping an arm around her waist to grab a cookie from the tray. Riza countered the motion, though, grabbing the hand and pushing it back.

"No," she said firmly.

"Like you can stop me," Martel laughed, her other arm behind the same direction, snatching a cookie, stuffing it in her mouth.

Riza turned around and glared. "They're best when they're hot," Martel told her, taking another and stuffing it in Riza's mouth.

Riza was about to respond, but her voice was muffled. She chewed and swallowed the cookie, looking at Martel who had her pinned to the counter.

"How do you expect me to keep the kitchen warm by baking all day if you're keeping me here?" Riza asked.

Martel didn't answer that question, just pinned Riza's wrists with her hand up against the kitchen cabinets, enjoying the long, lean line the officer's body made. "Why did you still set up the couch for me?" Martel asked, easing closer to Riza, cutting off all space between them.

"What do you mean?" Riza asked, just close enough to the stove where she could feel the heat eminating from it.

Martel sighed, pulling Riza's wrists together and pinning them with one hand. She was obviously hurt, watching Riza carefully, her arm dropping dully to her side. "After last night, how could you still put me on the sofa?"

"What do you mean?" Riza asked again, but her voice was breathier this time, as Martel pressed her whole lean frame against her.

"Don't you_ remember_?" Martel asked carefully, her free hand thumbing at Riza's cheekbone.

"It's just awkward," Riza panted, sucking her lower lip into her mouth.

"Why?" Martel asked, pained, wishing now she's never asked the question.

Riza didn't answer; her intent clear enough as she raked her vision over the marks on Martel's skin.

"What do you remember?" she asked in a low voice, kissing below Riza's ear, cupping her jaw tenderly.

"I remember you, the girl I want to spend my entire life with," Riza repeated from the other night, blinking away the tears forming in her eyes.

"That's who I remember," Martel said softly, pulling away, wiping the tears away from Riza's face.

"It's just hard," Riza told her, the tears gone, her shaking ceased. "I know it's you, and I know I love you and want you and grieved when you died, but it's different, too."

"Just the body and a bit of the soul," Martel assured her, drawing Riza away from the counter with a gentle hand on her waist. "I know perfectly well I love you."

Riza nodded stiffly, grabbing the tray of cookies. She moved to the kitchen table with Martel and sat there with her elbows on the table. "I'd like you to sleep with me in my bed tonight," Riza managed, looking up at Martel with determined eyes.

"I'd love that," the chimera returned, placing a cookie at Riza's lips. Riza ate the cookie dutifully, licking the last of the crumbs off her mouth.

"You're right," she said after a moment.

Martel looked at her confused, chewed, and swallowed. "About what?" she asked, wiping the crumbs off her face.

"Pretty much everything," Riza sighed. "You're you. I love you. You love me. And the cookies taste better warm."

The chimera was too busy laughing to notice the look on Riza's face for a while. It was a look she knew well from when she was a kid. Idolatry, adoration, pure love. When she smiled softly and touched Riza's gentle face, the officer pulled her close, kissing her softly.

"Sealed with a kiss," she told the chimera.

Martel shivered lightly when Riza pulled away, staring up at her with a smile. "It's getting cold in here again," she mumbled, standing up and putting her coffee cup in the sink.

"Should I make more cookies?" Riza asked.

Shaking her head, Martel walked back, wrapping her arms around Riza and leaning her head against the officer's shoulder. "I've a better idea," she whispered in Riza's ear.

"What's that?" Riza asked, awkwardly holding the chimera back.

"Can I take that offer for tonight up now?"

Riza laughed and got up, giving Martel another soft kiss. "Of course," she said, leading the chimera to her room, snuggling up in the covers with her.

"We've got a cold winter season ahead of us," Martel told Riza, sighing happily in her arms.

"Then I'll have to make cookies a lot."

"Or we can stay in bed all day," Martel countered.

"We could," Riza agreed, closing her eyes, laying lazily with Martel, not caring about the subtle differences in anatomy or the way she didn't warm up until held, just happy to be holding her, and being her source of heat.


	4. Morning Coffee

Martel woke up, feeling cold again, and therefore lazy. That, however, made no sense; every time Riza got out of bed, Martel was sure, the woman made coffee. Yet the house smelled faintly of the cloves from their tea last night, the flavorful aroma of coffee not replaced the weak smell. It took a while for her to manage to roll out of bed, the chill air cooling her blood, making her lethargic.

She stumbled into the kitchen, clumsily pulling her boots on as she did so. Riza was sitting at the table, scowling, a cup full of liquid too clear to be coffee in front of her.

"No coffee?" Martel asked confused, making her way over to the stove range, tapping at the percolator. Riza watched her sleepily, to apathetic to answer her question when Martel could easily find out herself. Martel picked the percolator up and slumped, letting it clatter back onto the range when she felt its empty weight. "Okay," she snapped. "_Why_ is there no coffee?"

"There is no coffee," Riza said, yawning, grouchy, "because there is no milk. And coffee is nasty without milk."

Martel stared at her for a few moments. "There is too milk," she said moodily.

"Is not," Riza snapped back.

Martel stomped over to the ice box, shivering. "Is too!" she said, pulling out a glass bottle.

"Take a good look at that," Riza yawned. Martel stared at the bottle for a few moments then sighed.

The milk was off color, yellowish and when she opened the bottle didn't smell like milk she'd put in coffee. "Buttermilk," she moaned. "Why do you have buttermilk?"

"Griddle cakes," Riza said lightly. "And I make good buttermilk cakes."

"Domestic," Martel mumbled under her breath, fumbling through the ice box again. "Milk!" she snapped, pulling another glass bottle out, this time the right color.

"I am _not_ domestic," Riza murmured, ignoring Martel's new discovery.

"MILK!" Martel repeated.

"That's not milk," Riza said, grinning up across the room at Martel."

Martel opened the bottle and smelled it. "It smells like milk," she declared. "And it looks like milk. Therefore it _must_ be milk."

"Tip the bottle a little to the side," Riza told her, sipping at her tea absentmindedly.

Martel stared at her, but did so. "Cream's fine for coffee," she said, watching the viscosity of the liquid.

"Heavy whipping cream is _not_ good for coffee," Riza retorted. "We need milk."

Martel glared at the bottle. "I'm too tired to go to the store," she told Riza pointedly. "And it's cold outside."

"You think I'm awake?" Riza retorted, the rest of her diatribe cut off by a yawn.

Martel sighed, putting the buttermilk back in the ice box, taking the whipping cream to the counter.

"What do you think you're doing?" Riza asked. Martel didn't answer, but went to the pantry getting cocoa powder and sugar. Riza just watched her as the chimera got the coffee grounds, boiling water in the percolator.

"I'm making whipped cream," Martel yawned, searching for powdered sugar. "Coffee isn't good with straight cream, but coffee with cocoa and whipped cream _is_ good and you can't deny that."

"Can too," Riza grouched back, too tired to still be awake and without coffee.

Martel ignored the retort, setting up the press in the percolator once the water was hot.

"Beaters are in the second drawer," Riza said, just giving in, wanting her coffee now.

"Thanks," Martel responded, moving to the drawer. She poured some of the cream into the bowel, adding liberal amounts of powdered sugar, popping her shoulder before starting to use the beaters, twirling the cogs quickly.

She couldn't resist a taste of the whipped cream before it was done, and so licked the beaters as she took them to the sink.

"You should make some chocolate whipped cream, too," Riza complained.

"But there will be chocolate in the coffee," Martel told her.

"Who said I want it for the coffee?" Riza yawned.

Martel stared at her for a few moments, rinsing the beaters in the sink, letting the water run over her fingers long after the beaters were clean, just watching the officer. "I don't think we're on the same page," she said in a low voice.

"Why not?" Riza asked lightly.

"We've been sharing a bed for a week," Martel said, turning back to the sink. "You've told me several times how much you love me, but beyond a few mild kisses and the day we met again, you haven't touched me."

"It's hard," Riza said sullenly, sniffling.

Martel turned back to look at her face. "This hurts you as much as me, doesn't it?" she asked softly.

Riza didn't say anything, just looked up defiantly at Martel, her eyes free of tears, but pouting a bit. Martel smiled softly, drying the beaters as she went back to the bowl, pouring half the whipped cream into a second mixing bowl, eying the cocoa powder, beating it into the second bowl.

Riza watched her, sighing happily into her cup of tea, watching the steam rise, watching Martel stalk around the kitchen in her checkered pajamas, baggy around the woman's figure, making the difference in their sizes apparent. The top fell over her shoulder, the tattoos scrolling down her side, but Riza wasn't staring at that feature, watching what she could see of the side of Martel's face, content as she thoroughly mixed the cocoa powder into the whipped cream.

She put the whipped cream bowls in the ice box where they fit easily; milk wasn't the only thing they were out of.

"We're going grocery shopping after coffee," Riza told her.

"After whipped cream," Martel corrected her and was rewarded with a wide grin.

"After whipped cream," Riza agreed. She watched as Martel took the percolator, pouring the coffee into a sauce pan, which she placed on the range, heating it with low heat, adding the sugar and cocoa powder. It took her only a few minutes to get it to taste, and she poured it back into the percolator.

She wandered to the fridge getting the regular whipped cream, placing it next to the percolator, interrupted in her task by a yawn. She got two coffee mugs out of the cabinet and poured the coffee into them, spooning whipped cream on top absentmindedly swirling it.

She walked back to the kitchen table and moved Riza's tea cup away with a huff, giving her the coffee. "There being no milk is no excuse to not make coffee and drink tea," Martel said softly, sipping at the sweetly bitter beverage.

"Don't be so bitter," Riza giggled. "You've got your coffee."

"If you think I'm bitter, why don't you make me sweet?" Martel asked, rubbing her bare foot up against Riza's ankle. "The whipped cream's in the fridge."

"Coffee first," Riza murmured happily, sipping at the beverage. "And besides, I think I could only make you bitter sweet. You've got too much angst and misery and pain inside of you." Riza stared at Martel over her cup of coffee, keeping a straight face until Martel glared morosely.

"See?" Riza asked, giggling. "You just prove my point!"

"I'm not bitter," she complained. "I'm just cold and coffee-deprived."

"Well, we can fix the latter here," Riza pondered. "The second we might have to get into bed with, though."

"You mind doing laundry?" Martel asked nonchalantly.

Riza stared at Martel, trying to puzzle out the seemingly non sequitor.

"I mean," Martel said. "If we take whipped cream, especially chocolate whipped cream into the bedroom, do you think the sheets will stay clean?"

Riza bit her lower lip, trying not to laugh outright. "I'm not domestic," she told Martel carefully. "But from watching you in the kitchen, you are. Why don't you do the laundry this time?"

"I'm not domestic!" Martel countered. "I am, well, was part of the elite forces. I kill people for a living; I don't cook or clean or do laundry or any crap like that."

Riza just watched her, sipping the girly coffee drink the woman had made.

"Okay, I'll do the laundry," she snapped, glaring at Riza's passive face.

Riza got up and got herself a second cup of coffee, stirring the whipped cream on top happily, watching Martel. "We ought to get you some new clothes," she said, leaning back against the sink.

"It's not like I'm planning on going outside a lot," Martel sighed. "I'm dead, remember?"

Riza frowned. "I doubt anyone will recognize you," she said softly.

"I can't really risk it," Martel said. "I knew I was safe with Greed, but now I have no one to protect me." She bit her lower lip once she realized what she had said, raising her gaze to look Riza in the eye.

"I know you're here for me," she intoned softly. "It's just..." She paused, searching for the right words, lowering her eyes, no longer looking at Riza. "I know you'd fight to protect me, but when I was with Greed, I believed he couldn't die. He was the perfect invincible man who could always keep the military from hurting me.

"And... I was wrong you know? The thing is, I've been thinking about it, and he _chose _ death." Martel looked pointedly at Riza. "Well, he would have _left_ either way, but he specifically went to her house. Knowing he's likely die.

"How is that protecting me?"

Riza didn't know what to say at first, just watching her over the cup across the kitchen, but she put her coffee cup down on the counter, walking over to the chimera, wrapping her arms around her.

"I mean," Martel continued. "He gave us a choice. We didn't have to leave the lab, but that would have been worse. But he said he'd take care of us if we took care of his needs."

Martel just watched her, her face perplexed, no tears pooling in her eyes, just a calm, but hurt demeanor. "And we did," she continued in a hoarse voice. "We killed, kidnapped, stole... We did anything he asked us to because he _claimed _ he'd do what no one else could--protect us from our creators."

Riza stroked the woman's short hair, the chair hurting her ribs, but not caring. She'd only seen the girl cry once. Only once.

No one knew this woman like she did, even if her body had been meshed with something else. Riza could touch every plane of her stomach, stroke down her thigh, press against her shoulder and know _innately _ this was the woman she loved.

She didn't need a little trigger like tears to tell the girl was hurting, showing the world she was too strong for their definitions of feminine sensitivity, flaunting her strength, though it was crumbling inside.

Perhaps her arms around the woman, her slight waist, could rebuild some of that structure. Remind her that you didn't need invincibility to love someone and give up everything for them.

All you needed was a soul.

Riza didn't know how long she held the chimera, but when she pulled back, her chest was bruised from the ribs of the chair, though that didn't matter because Martel had stopped shaking. She pulled the chair back from the table, touching Martel's shoulder softly, leaning over to whisper, "I'm here."

The words seemed to be enough to stir the chimera, gazing back at her wordlessly, her eyes dry, her body still, a badly executed attempt at defiance scrawled across her face, just trying to protect herself. Just trying to keep from getting hurt.

"Don't you remember what we said?" Martel asked her softly. "We're going to spend the rest of our lives together, remember?"

Martel paused, watching her, blinking slowly.

"I can't abandon you and stay with you for the rest of my life," Riza clarified. Martel nodded, plastering a smile that didn't fit on her face.

"You may not be domestic," Riza told her scornfully, "But emotions shouldn't be too feminine for you."

Martel opened her mouth to say something, but Riza leaned forward, kissing her gently, her fingers splayed on the chimera's neck, open fingered, leaving the marks clear to see.

After Riza pulled back, straightening up, Martel stood up as well, taking her hand in her own, a genuine smile on her face. Riza pulled her close wrapping an arm around the waist of the slender chimera, burying her face in the crook of her neck.

The affection was almost startling to the chimera, but she didn't complain, enjoying the soft grip around her waist, the kisses against the back of her neck.

The touches yielded promise for both of them; promise that it didn't matter what had happened, funerals or alchemy, wars or coups because it didn't matter, soft kisses assuring not only love, but protection. It was a step at least, the caresses and kisses, and neither of them really minded that the whipped cream lay forgotten in the ice box.

Because they'd have the rest of their lives.


	5. More than Grocery Shopping

Martel woke up. She was groggy, and rolled over, reaching for Riza, and grasping nothing but air. The smell of brewing coffee wasn't in the air yet, and the bed next to her was cold, so she didn't understand where her lover could have gone. Standing up, and finding Riza's terrycloth robe, she checked the time. Eleven o'clock. If she remembered correctly, it was a Saturday, so Riza wouldn't have to go into work.

She meandered into the kitchen, scratching the back of her neck. She spied a note on the table, held down by a cup of coffee. It seemed that Riza must have gotten up early, brewed her coffee, and by now the smell had left the apartment. Martel's tongue flickered over her lips. No, she couldn't smell any remnants of the coffee in the air anymore. It must have been hours since it was brewed.

She picked up the cold much and poured the black coffee into a saucepan, turning on the stove to warm it up, ignoring the note for now. It was chilly in the apartment, and she was still waking up. Hopefully soon enough the apartment would be warmer, and she could think properly.

After standing by the range for some time, her body slowly warming, she made her way back to the table to read the note Riza had left for her. It was short and to the point.

i Didn't want to wake you up. You looked so beautiful sleeping. Went grocery shopping. When milkman comes, pay him with money in the nightstand. I'll bring a special treat for you when I get back. /i

She was glad Riza had finally gone grocery shopping and ordered some milk. She poured the now- warm coffee into the mug and added the last of the whipped cream into the cup. They needed food in the house. Normally, Riza had gotten away with just having coffee and milk in the house, and perhaps a few things for breakfast. She could eat at the office - there was a cafeteria - and she could grab something on the way home. But now that Martel was staying at the house, and couldn't really leave, for fear of being caught by the military, Riza had to make sure the icebox was stocked.

Peeking into the box before she put the whipped cream back, Martel sighed. All the fresh food that was left was some shriveled lettuce and a fillet of fish that looked like it should have been eaten long ago. Wrinkling her nose, she shut the door to the icebox and stirred the whipped cream into the coffee, feeling lonely.

When Riza was at work, it was the hardest time for Martel. Riza's library was small, and her books were mainly on topics boring to Martel--the history of guns, biographies of people she didn't know--all non-fiction. Martel thought about the girl of her youth that couldn't keep her nose out of a romance novel, and smiled to herself.

Where were those novels now? She could use one; she could use something to do during the day. For a while, she had taken to cooking, preparing dinner for Riza before she got home. But, stuck in the apartment with only Black Hayate as company, she often idled, not sure what to do with herself.

She was woken up by a sharp knock on the door, not quite sure when she had fallen asleep. Yawning, and meandering over to the door, at first she thought it was Riza, her arms laden with groceries. But as she opened the door, she saw a man, carrying a case of three bottles of milk. "Riza Hawkeye?" he asked.

Close enough, Martel decided, and gave him the money she had found in the nightstand. "Thank you, ma'am," he said, and departed as quickly as he came.

The small interaction seemed odd to Martel. She really had only managed to spend large amounts of time with a couple of people before Greed had disappeared into i her /i house. Alphonse Elric and Riza Hawkeye. Both of them had been kind to her, treating her, eventually in Riza's case, just like any other person. The fact that she had just gotten the delivery of milk from the milkman, a trivial experience to most people, was an accepting interaction, proof that perhaps once the hunt for her kind mellowed down she could live freely among humans. At least oblivious ones.

To live freely with Riza.

She smiled, and made her way back to the sofa, thinking of a more idyllic world.

When Riza got home, Martel was still asleep on the couch. Black Hayate curled up in her lap. Riza tossed the two of the sacks she had brought in onto the kitchen table, and then went back to the living area, making a beeline for her lover. She wasn't sure whether to tell Martel off for letting the dog on the sofa, or to curl up with her. She looked so calm and peaceful when she was sleeping: nothing like the dynamic woman she was when warm and awake.

As she watched, Martel stirred, yawning slightly and nudging Black Hayate off her lap. The dog yelped slightly and scampered over to Riza, sitting down and looking at her pleadingly.

Martel stood up, rubbing the back of her head, a goofy smile on her face. "You're home," she laughed. "And you brought real food..."

"And the treat I promised," Riza said with a smile of her own.

"What kind of treat?" Martel asked, suspicious, going to the kitchen to put the groceries away.

"Your favorite kind of treat," Riza said with a wink. "Or at least it was."

"They still make that?" Martel asked, her eyes wide.

Riza rolled her eyes. "You ought to be amazed how hard it is to find these days. It's nearly three o'clock and I've been shopping since seven o'clock in the morning."

Martel quickly put the perishables in the icebox and found what she was looking for. She pulled the paper wrapped object out of the bag, slightly breathless. "I haven't had proper chocolate in years," she mumbled, ripping off the paper hastily.

"I got two of them," Riza said with a soft smile, letting her hair down and taking her jacket off. She filled Black Hayate's bowl with dog food before turning to look at Martel. "One for now, and one for later. I know how much you loved the dark chocolate bars with pralines." She almost did a double take, looking at Martel again, whose face was messy with chocolate, the bar completely gone.

"You must have wanted chocolate more than I thought!" Riza laughed. "I hope you don't gain any weight!" The last words were facetious. Even getting proper food and pastries from Riza, rather than having to scavenge her meals together, the chimera hadn't even put on a single pound.

Martel couldn't help but laugh as well, sauntering over to Riza. "I'm a mess," she said softly, holding up a chocolate covered finger to Riza's lips.

Riza looked carefully at the chimera. "You must have really wanted that chocolate," she murmured, her tongue flickering to taste the chocolate offered, sucking on Martel's fingertip teasingly, wrapping an arm around her. A second finger, covered with even more melted chocolate, made its way into Riza's mouth, and she massaged it with her tongue, suckling on it to the knuckle.

Martel seemed weak at the knees and whispered simply in Riza's ear, "Did you know that some cultures consider chocolate an aphrodisiac?"

Riza pulled back a bit, licking the chocolate from the corner of the chimera's mouth, mumbling an assent, the sugary pralines, chocolate, and inherent taste of Martel more of an aphrodisiac than anything else could be. Riza pushed Martel up against the back of the couch, forcing her into a sitting position, and crawling into her lap, kissing her properly now, passionate and needy, the arm around her waist grasping at her, trying to pull her even closer as she pushed her against the couch.

Martel gasped and pushed Riza away a bit. "Need to put the rest of the groceries away," she gasped.

"Later," Riza said, nipping at the chimera's lower lip. "It's been a while since we've had time for just each other."

"If we put the rest of the groceries away," Martel reasoned, "we can find the other bar of chocolate. If there is anything I would like..." She paused, giving Riza a sultry look. "I would like to you feed it to me sensually, straddling me naked in bed."

Riza was shocked. Her childhood sweetheart hadn't managed to be so candid since they had met again, but somehow, she enjoyed the idea. Crawling out of the woman's lap, she smiled. "I'll play your game then," she mumbled. "Put the groceries away, strip, go to the bedroom, and eat it properly."

"Exactly," Martel purred, cracking her back, bending in a way that no person should be able to.

Putting the groceries away was mundane, but both of them knew it had to be done before some of the food went bad and insects found the rest. In the very bottom of the last back, Riza found the second bar of chocolate and held it aloft.

"Go to the bedroom," she said, winking at Martel. "And I expect you to be naked when I get there."

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**A/N** Mmm, sorry, I have to cut it off here for FFN. There's more, though. I can upload the entirety of next chapter, though. If you really want to know the rest of this, eh, contact me, and I'll see about getting it to you. 


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